Hunter

Renfroe

Renfroe hit .229 with 15 home runs and 52 RBI in 120 games with Kansas City in 2024. Renfroe, a first round pick by the Padres in 2013, has seen his production fall off in the last two years. He had a career .490 SLG before the 2023 season, but posted a .416 SLG in 2023 and a .392 last year. Renfroe, who turns 33 before spring training, is likely just a name to know for deeper fantasy formats in 2025.

Hunter Renfroe got the nod over Pham against the Orioles’ Zach Eflin. Today’s lineup is the same the Royals used in the opener against Baltimore: 2B Michael Massey, SS Bobby Witt Jr., DH Vinnie Pasquantino, C Salvador Perez, 1B Yuli Gurriel, LF MJ Melendez, RF Pham, CF Kyle Isbel, 3B Maikel Garcia.

Renfroe will take the spot of Tommy Pham in the lineup as the Royals look to advance to the NLDS against the Yankees. Renfroe has hit well against Baltimore starter Zach Eflin in a small sample, going 5-for-13 with a 1.154 OPS. The full lineup: Michael Massey 2B, Bobby Witt Jr. SS, Vinnie Pasquantino DH, Salvador Perez C, Yuli Gurriel 1B, MJ Melendez LF, Renfroe RF, Kyle Isbel CF and Maikel Garcia hitting ninth at third behind Seth Lugo and the Kansas City pitching staff.

With Hunter Renfroe coming off the IL, the Royals needed to make room on the active roster, and Cruz was the choice. The 25-year-old made two appearances in the past week and has thrown 3 1/3 scoreless innings from the Royals this season. He’ll likely get another shot out of the bullpen this season.

Renfroe began his rehab assignment on Wednesday and that was apparently all the Royals needed to see. The veteran was hitting .263/.345/.424 in 27 games since the All-Star break with four home runs and 17 RBI before heading to the injured list. With Vinnie Pasquantino out, the Royals will hope Renfroe can bring a little bit of pop back to their struggling lineup.

Renfroe, out since Aug. 24 with a mild hamstring strain, will probably come off the IL on Friday. It will be interesting to see how the Royals make room for him after bringing in three veteran part-timers last week. Adam Frazier has lost most of his playing time as a result and might be in danger of getting bumped from the roster. If the Royals would prefer to preserve their depth, they could option Dairon Blanco, even though he’s quite useful off the bench.

Renfroe strained his right hamstring while running in the outfield on August 24th and was placed on the 10-day IL a day later. The fact that he has already begun baseball activities is a good sign that he might not be out much longer. The Royals need to decide whether to send him on a rehab assignment or not, but Renfroe if they decide to get his bat back into the lineup quickly then he could be back by the weekend of September 6th.

Renfroe will miss at least the next week-plus while he recovers. The Royals have recalled Gentry from Triple-A Omaha to take Renfroe’s place on the active roster. Renfroe’s timeline will be determined by the severity of the strain, but a return in the middle of September seems like the most conservative estimation.

Renfroe has picked it up at the plate lately. He’s had three multi-hit games in a row and has a 10-game hitting streak. In his last 10 games, he’s 15-for-40 (.375) with two home runs and nine RBI. Renfroe is hitting .246 with a .741 OPS and 44 RBI on the year.

Renfroe’s home run was his 10th of the season. He took Shota Imanaga deep for a solo shot in the second inning. Renfroe was hitting .140 with three home runs on May 11th, but since then he’s hitting .300 with seven home runs and 25 RBI in 48 games. Those are certainly respectable numbers for a player many left for dead earlier in the season. Renfroe’s hitting .233 with a .723 OPS and 38 RBI on the year.